Marcos Unaware Pork Barrel Still Exist?

FOLLOWING former Public Works and Highway Secretary Manuel Bonoan’s sworn revelation, Malacañang issued a statement claiming that President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. wasn’t aware about the existence of the so-called “pork barrel” in the guise of a new name.

During a press briefing, Undersecretary Claire Castro particularly hinted at the P24-billion “leadership fund” that was distributed to senators under the 19th Congress.

Bonoan, who appeared at the Sandiganbayan hearing of the malversation case involving former Senator Bong Revilla, said that the “leadership fund” amounting to P24 billion was allocated to senators for their pet infrastructure projects under the 2025 budget of the Department of Public Works and Highways.

“If the president knew about it, that wouldn’t have happened, right? It’s like a teacher—if you cheated, would you tell your teacher about it? And if the teacher caught you, what would the teacher do? Of course, you would be given a penalty,” Castro told reporters.

“So, let’s just put it this way: if the President knew about it, he would not have tolerated it, and it would not have happened. But sometimes, these kinds of arrangements are kept secret,” she added.

BONOAN’S TESTIMONY

Bonoan testified in court that all senators in the 19th Congress availed of at least P500 million each under the fund during his tenure as DPWH Secretary.

At the witness stand, the former DPWH chief said the lists of priority projects were submitted through then Undersecretary for Operations Roberto Bernardo.

From there, the projects he added would be evaluated before being included in the agency’s budget proposal. The Department of Budget and Management (DBM) would then include the items in the NEP, which the President submits to Congress, which would deliberate the budget bill, thresh out differences and finalize it before the President signs it into law as the General Appropriations Act.

ZERO PORK BARREL

When asked if “leadership fund” forms part of the 2027 National Expenditure Program (NEP) that was recently submitted to Congress, Castro assured that the proposed budget for next year does not contain any similar fund.

“No leadership fund under the 2027 budget. All projects proposed in the 2027 DPWH budget are based on needs of the local and regional government,” Castro said, citing a statement from the DPWH.

“And if needed, [they must] secure clearance from RDC [Regional Development Council] and development council to ensure that [they] benefit the people. Only projects that have completed the documentary requirements, such as plans, programs are submitted to ensure […] compliance with DBM guidelines,” she added.

NOT INHERENTLY WRONG

Castro, however, maintained that there is nothing inherently wrong with officials having projects under the DPWH, provided funds serve its purpose and don’t involve kickbacks.

She went as far as claiming that the President, the DPWH, and the DBM have been careful in ensuring that abuses allegedly committed “way back in 2018” do not happen again.

The leadership fund was first exposed by Sen. Panfilo Lacson in April as the new form of pork barrel. Lacson, who then chaired the Senate blue ribbon committee, had called for its abolition.

It was under Lacson’s leadership when the panel started investigating alleged widespread corruption in government public works projects in August last year.